The Unknown
by Jack Cross
Summary: What happens when someone from our world arrives in the world of the Avatar? Please R&R.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I own only a few characters, everything else belongs to the creators of Avatar. **

**A/N: I've had this rattling around in my head for a while so i figured I'd just get it out and let someone read it so please review, let me know what you think, and enjoy. **

Sokka knelt on the large branch of the massive tree. All around him, green buds of leaves were just starting to appear. He pulled the spyglass from his pack and looked out across the forest. A small platoon of Fire Nation soldiers moved down a small road. Using the skills he had acquired during his sword training, Sokka made his way back down to the ground.

"Ok, we've got a Fire Nation patrol just across the creek," he whispered. Toph punched him in the arm, knocking him to the ground.

"If you had listened me, you wouldn't have had to climb that stupid tree," she said. Aang, Katara, and Sukki smothered a laugh as Sokka picked himself up out of the dirt. Zuko climbed onto the back of Appa and looked out across the small canyon to the road.

"We should leave anyway," he said. Everyone else reluctantly began to pack up the camp. Unnoticed by them, a young man watched them though a pair of field glasses. He was kneeling on a ridge roughly a half-mile uphill behind them. As the flying bison lifted off and flew away, the young man turned and mounted his ostrich horse. Putting the field glasses into a saddlebag, he spurred the gangly creature after the flying beast.

For three weeks, he had followed this group all over occupied Earth Kingdom territory. Many, he sought the Avatar, this world's physical embodiment. There were others like him in other worlds, but he sought this one for a unique reason. His world's version of the Avatar had been killed permanently, and his world had fallen into both man made and natural chaos as a result.

Personally, he believed that this world's Avatar held the secret to save his world.

But his studies of this group and the world around them had made him cautious. The oldest member of the group, the one with a red scar on his face, was cautious and could react violently to anyone suspicious who approached the group. Next in the line of age were the two non-benders of the group, although they could posses a since of arrogance and silliness, they where both very agile fighters when it came down to a situation.

Next was the teen female who, although possessing motherly traits, could have times of non-mercy and cruelty. Following this young woman were the two youngest members, both of them at the age of twelve. The girl, although blind, was like the group's radar. She used vibrations in the earth around them to sense the area around the group for a certain distance. The other was the one he seeked: The Avatar. He was bald and had blue arrow tattoos going over his limbs and on top of his head, and he was by far the most powerful out of the whole group.

All of this ran though his mind as he bounced down the wooded hillside and arrived at a road. Turning east and following the massive white beast, he spurred his mount to almost full speed. Rounding a corner, he found himself face to face with a Fire Nation patrol. The beast reared slightly as he pulled back on the reigns, the claw like feet sliding in the dirt of the road.

Both the rider and the patrol looked at each other shocked that the other was in front of them. But the shock didn't last long as the rider drew his sword, issued a blood-curling scream, and charged the patrol. All but the commanding officer where non benders and reacting slowly to the charging horseman, with in less then a minute, several of the regular soldiers lay dead and the rider was riding at a high speed away from the patrol.

A single bolt of fire rushed past his head and ignited the road and trees before him. He yanked on the reigns again, this time reaching into one of his saddlebags. A small pistol like crossbow appeared in his hand. Launching the bolt, the rider watched as a small explosion occurred, blinding the commander with a wall of dirt. When the dirt cleared, the commander realized that the rider had disappeared.

Pulling out the field glasses again, the rider scanned the sky for the Avatar's bison. Finally, he spotted the bison as a white dot on the horizon. Putting the field glasses away, he spurred his mount after them. Arriving at a small river, the rider hunched over the saddle horn as cold water splashed up over him.

Reaching the opposite bank, the rider watched as the sky bison touched down in a clearing a few miles ahead. With a sigh, he spurred his mount forward.

Tonight would be a good time as any to confront them.


	2. Chapter 2

**As Always, please review and let me know what you think.**

Suki squatted by the campfire, slowly cooking the meat for the night's meal. Nearby, Sokka and Zuko practiced their swordsmanship by moving though the various forms that each one's style practiced. Aang ate a small collection of fruits and berries while Toph lay inside her stone tent; Katara sat nearby, reading one of her waterbending scrolls. They were only three days from the coast, and being out of occupied territory.

The walls of Toph's tent suddenly retracted into the ground.

"Someone's coming," she said, facing in the direction of where the newcomer was approaching. Suki grabbed her fans, Zuko and Sokka readied their swords, and Katara and Aang took their bending stances. Slowly, a single rider on an ostrich horse melted out of the shadows on the edge of the campfire's light. His face was hidden by the shadows created by the Earth Kingdom soldier's helmet on his head. The duster like coat stretched down from his shoulders and covered a portion of his saddlebags.

"That's far enough, what do you want?" asked Zuko. The rider brought his mount to a halt and looked over the campsite.

"I want to speak with the Avatar," he said in a quite voice.

"Oh great, another bounty hunter," muttered Katara. The rider shifted slightly in his saddle.

"I said a want to speak with him, I didn't say that I wanted him," he replied.

"All right, but leave your weapons with your ride," said Aang. The rider dismounted and unbuckled his sword. Walking forward slowly, the rider allowed the helmet to slide back and rest on his shoulder blades. He was surprisingly young, only a year or so older then Zuko.

"All your weapons," said Toph. The rider paused and undid his belt. He rapped it around a single leather chunk that held a metal and wood object before setting it on the ground. Walking forward, the rider sat on a stump near the fire. Aang sat across from him while Zuko and Sokka stood on either side of him, ready to act if he made a move.

"Ok, so what is your name?" asked Aang. The rider sighed and ran his fingers through his dark brown hair.

"Lee," he answered.

"And what is it that you want Lee?" asked Katara. Lee rung his hands slightly, obviously nervous.

"I need your help," he said, leaning forward.

"Doesn't everyone," muttered Zuko, Lee shot him a glance but quickly returned his gaze to Aang.

"Please, you must listen and believe me. There are things I've seen, things I've done that none of you could possibly understand, but I will try to explain anyway," said Lee, but he paused for a moment.

"So what's stopping you?" asked Toph. Lee took a breath and rung his hands again.

"Can someone please get me the saddlebag on the left side of my mount?" he asked. Suki moved away from the group and retrieved the bag as asked. Under close watch, Lee opened the bag and pulled two large scrolls from it. Unrolling both of them, it was reviled that they were two different maps.

"This is your world as it should look with the four respected nations," said Lee as he tapped the map on the left.

"And this is mine," he finished, tapping the one on the right. The map on the right contained two major landmasses, a large island, and two major ice caps at both the top and the bottom of the map.

"Are you trying to say that you're not from this world?" asked Sokka. Toph crossed her arms.

"He's not lying," she said bluntly. Sokka cocked his eyebrow at her.

"And how would you know…oh yeah, sorry," he said. Lee sighed before he continued.

"My world is a parallel version of yours, meaning that there is an Avatar in my world as well as yours," he said. Aang leaned forward, curious now.

"So why is it that you need my help? Why not ask your version of the Avatar?" he asked. Lee sighed, as he leaned back.

"She was killed," he said after a moment of silence. Everyone except for Toph blinked in surprise.

"How?" Katara asked after another silent moment. Lee sighed again, sorrow evident in his eyes.

"There was a war that had consumed the globe. She was in the Avatar State, trying to protect a small village from a massive army, and she was overrun. I saw her destroy half of the world's largest army, and then she was knocked out of the sky like a ragdoll," he said, tears in his eyes.

"Did you love her?" asked Aang. Lee didn't answer, but rather he wiped his eyes slightly.

"I was a member of the Gunslingers, an order that sought knowledge and wisdom, while at the same time worked to find and protect each Avatar," he said simply.

"Like the Order of the White Lotus," said Zuko to no one in particular. Lee nodded in agreement. But Sokka cocked his eyebrow and knelt in front of Lee.

"I'm sorry, the what slingers?" he asked. Lee rolled his eyes slightly.

"Gunslingers," he said. Sokka traced his chin with the tips of his fingers.

"I see, and what is a gun exactly?" he asked. Lee glared at him with impatience.

"A device that I am not going to show and or demonstrate to any of you due to do the possible consciences," he said.

"What sort of consciences?" asked Suki, speaking up for the first time. Lee returned his focus to Aang.

"Technology wise, your world is far behind mine. Your most powerful nation only recently archived the airship, but if I introduce a piece of military technology to one side of your war, the balance would drastically tip in that sides favor, and the loss of life would increase," he said. Aang nodded in agreement.

"So then what is it exactly that you want Aang to help you with?" asked Katara.

"I need his help in bringing my world's Avatar back to life," replied Lee.

"Can't you guys live without an Avatar?" asked Toph.

"Don't you think we haven't tried that? Everything fell out of balance after she died. The sun use to rise in the east and set in the west, now it rises in the south and sets in the east, tides drown whole cities, and earthquakes ravage the continents on a daily basis," snapped Lee. He focused on Aang.

"I need to bring her back, before the whole planet falls apart."


	3. Chapter 3

**As always, please review and let me know what you think. **

"Are you sure that we can trust him?" asked Sokka casting a glace at the other campfire about thirty yards away.

"He was telling the truth," said Toph, crossing her arms.

"The question is how do we deal with him," said Zuko as he sat his sword to the side. Aang sat with his legs crossed and his chin resting on his fist as he gazed at the other campfire.

"We need to get to know him, he could around for a while," he said. Without speaking, Katara stood and started to the other campfire. She picked her way though the undergrowth before she arrived at the edge of Lee's camp. The ostrich horse was picketed across the camp; Lee lay on a bedroll near the fire cleaning a large metal object. A crack of a stick breaking emanated as Katara neared, causing Lee to rush to put the metal object away.

"You're a little jumpy," she said, standing on the edge of his camp. Lee motioned for her to approach.

"Back home, it's the difference between life and death," he replied. Katara sat across the fire from him.

"So is that it? The weapon you spoke of?" she asked, motioning to wear he had put the object. Lee sighed slightly before he nodded.

"Yes, that is my gun," he said. Katara could not help but admit that she did find this newcomer rather interesting.

"Where did you get it?" she asked. Lee waited for a moment before answering, trying to figure out weather she was trustworthy or not.

"My father passed it to me, like his father passed it to him," he answered. He leaned forward, putting his chin on his kneecaps.

"If you're here by the bidding of the one with the sword and the pony tail, you're not going to get anymore information."

"Why would Sokka send me here to get information?" she asked.

"I've seen his type before. They try to use what ever sort of information they get their hands on and use it against their enemies," said Lee, reaching out to stir some meat that was cooking over the fire.

"You sound as if you've known him your whole life," she said. Lee chuckled slightly before staring long and hard at her face.

"And what of you? Where do your alliances lie?" he asked.

"With Aang, of course," she answered imminently. Lee's eyes shined with amusement, a grin formed at the corner of his mouth.

"Your in love with him," he said simply. Katara's cheeks turned bright red.

"I am not," she said. Lee laughed.

"I've been were you are, I can see when someone's in love." Katara blushed some more before she stood.

"Well, I'm going to go back over to the others, Night."

"Goodnight," said Lee as she turned and disappeared into the shadows around the campsite. Waiting a full total of three heartbeats, Lee pulled the gun out again. It was a Colt Anaconda, its normally plastic grip replaced with wood. The family seal, a sword crossed with a scroll and encompassed with a circle, was branded into the right side of the grip. The weapon almost seamed to gleam in the firelight, like both a beacon of hope, and the blade of a sword.

"You hardly move, it's very had to tell were you are at times," said Toph, leaning on a nearby tree. Lee didn't bother to put he gun away, as he knew that she was blind to things that didn't move or things that weren't touching the ground.

"What's your point?" asked Lee. Toph smiled as she walked over and sat next to the fire.

"I don't have one," she said. Lee snapped the cylinders open and blew lightly down each chamber.

"I assume you have a reason behind your visit," he said, satisfied with the clean gun.

"We'll be reaching the coast tomorrow, and you still haven't told Aang what exactly you want from him," she said. Lee snapped the cylinders closed and gave them a spin with the tips of his fingers.

"Somewhere inside of him, one of his previous lives holds the answer to my world's problem. I don't know which one, but I know they're in there," he said as he took the meat off of the fire. Toph picked up a knife and stabbed one of the chucks, picking it up.

"Well, you'd better convince him to let you ride with us tomorrow or find yourself something else besides an ostrich horse," she said before she took a bite out of the meat. Lee cocked an eyebrow of annoyance at her, but grinned as a means to show that he was joking, even though he knew that she was blind.

"So you believe me?" he asked.

"I know that you were telling the truth. Although it does sound a little far fetched, but the truth is the truth," she replied before taking another bite. Lee stared into the fire's depth.

"Sometimes the blind see better then those with the eyes of a hawk," he muttered to himself.

"Thank you," said Toph through a mouth full of food, causing Lee to grin again. With a slight twirl to the gun, Lee stuck it back into its holster before leaning back.

"Enjoy your meal," he said as he slid the helmet down over his eyes.


	4. Chapter 4

**As always, please review and let me know what you think. **

The sun was barely peaking over through the trees as the group set to packing up the campsite. Nearby, Lee waited patently by his mount for them to get moving so he could follow. Aang noticed the rider waiting nearby, so he motioned for him to approach.

"You really are going to try and follow us aren't you," he said. Lee nodded slightly, his brown eyes bearing into the young boy. But he didn't speak.

"We're crossing an expanse of water today, how do you plan on following?" asked Aang.

"Maybe I could get a ride?" asked Lee, his hand resting on the hilt of his gun.

"You have to pull your weight around here," said Sokka as he walked up Appa's tale and into the saddle. Lee shrugged.

"I can hunt and gather," he said.

"That's my job," said Sokka. Lee thought for a moment.

"I can cook," he said.

"That's Katara's job," Sokka replied. This earned him a smack up side the head by his sister.

"It would be nice to have a break every once in a while," she said. Aang nodded.

"Alright, climb on board," he said. Lee turned, took both saddlebags from the ostrich horse, and then slapped the beast's flank. The lumbering creatures trotted off into the woods as Lee climbed onto Appa with relieve ease. Sitting at the back of the saddle, he watched as the last of the gear was loaded onto the bison. Aang Airbended his way onto Appa's head and took the reins. The beast let out a rumbling growl as before he took to the air.

Momo flew around the bison for a few times before landing in front of Lee. He chattered at the newcomer for a few moments before scurrying over and sitting on Toph's shoulder. The forest passed below them as a great field of green, the sea spread out ahead of them in a great shining blue. Sokka brought up his telescope and scanned the horizon to the north while Lee brought up his field glasses and looked to the south.

"We got Fire Nation ships about five miles out," he said. Sokka shifted to the other side of Appa and looked down as well.

"It's a whole blockade," he said, his breath catching in his throat. A red light flew up from the sea, a black trial following close behind. Aang swung his staff, sending out a wave of air that knocked the fireball away. Hundreds of fireballs suddenly began to fly up from the sea, coming from all sides in front of them. Aang, Zuko, and Katara did their best to force the fireballs away, but one flew straight at them. They realized that there was nothing they could do to force the ball away. A deep reasoning boom suddenly filled the air around them. They all clutched their ears as the fireball exploded into a thousand pieces. Looking up, they found Lee with his gun drawn and the barrel having a thin wisp of smoke coming out of it.

"What are you doing?" asked Toph.

"Saving our lives," came his reply. The bison shifted to the right and then to the left as more fireballs streamed up from the ships below. Lee quickly fug through his saddlebag and came up with his small crossbow. Leaning over the side of the saddle, he took careful aim at a ship below. Then he squeezed the trigger. Sokka and the others watched as the bolt flew into the ship's hold and detonated. Coal powder in the engines ignited, consuming the ship in a massive fireball. They watched as a red-hot chunk of a chimney from the ship shot past the bison before falling back into the sea.

"Whoa," breathed Katara as they left the blockade behind. Lee opened the cylinders on his gun and replaced the spent shell with a new bullet.

"So what happened to no demonstrations?" asked Aang as they flew. Lee returned the gun to its proper place and sat at the back of the saddle again.

"Well, I figured what the hell," he said as he took the helmet off and ran his fingers through his hair.

"What about all that talk about consciences?" asked Zuko. Lee shrugged.

"Aang's no good to me dead," he said simply. Aang looked back at him, trusting the bison to fly himself for a moment.

"So what exactly is it that you want from me?" he asked. Lee thought for a moment before he reached into his jacket and pulled out a small circular device. Three metal arms sprang out from it. An image shimmered into existence between the three tips. It was a single golden orb.

"This is a Ritcherdson Orb. Its sole use is to transfer energy from one object to another. Aang, one of your past lives handled this orb, somewhere deep inside of you, you know where this is," he said. Aang watched the image with a since of amazement. Never had he seen anything like this in his whole life. The image suddenly disappeared and the arms snapped back into the device.

"So is that all that little do dat can do?" asked Sokka, leaning forward to study the deceive before it was put away.

"No, that is not all," Lee replied as he returned to his seat.

"Well what else is it?" Toph asked.

"It's a gateway, the thing I used to get here in the first place," he answered before he looked out over the open sea. Suki leaned forward slightly.

"So how are we going to pass the time? I mean practicing is impossible as long as we're on Appa," she said.

"Know any good songs Lee?" asked Katara as she leaned near Aang. Lee thought for a moment.

"Not any that you'd understand," he said. Everyone else shrugged while Zuko remained indifferent. Lee cleared his throat slightly.

"At Easter 1916, when Peirce called them out. The men from the Dublin battalion roved out. And in that post office, they nobly did show: how a handful of heroes could out fight the foe," he sang slightly, not really liking to be the center of attention.

"Let me guess, it's a song that has to do with the big war you were talking about," said Sokka. Lee shook his head.

"It's a remembrance song, over a brave group of resistance fighters, dang thing's older then me by a long shot," replied Lee.

"So what was that big war about anyway?" asked Toph. Lee thought for a moment, still not liking the fact that he was the current center of attention.

"Oh, some fought for ideologies, others for land, still others for resources. But a few, like the Gunslingers, fought for survival," he said. Everyone was taken back a bit in surprise.

"You were hunted," said Aang. It wasn't a question. Lee nodded slightly.

"Yes, we were hunted. And very efficiently at that. About two months after Ic…the Avatar was killed; we made our final stand on the steps of the Great American Library," he said, his vision lowering to his feet. For Zuko, it all suddenly fell into place.

"You're the last of your order," he said. Lee simply nodded, but refused to speak. Grief and guilt had finally overtaken him. Aang knew how he felt, as he knew what it was like to be the last of your kind.

"So what are you going to do?" asked Katara.

"Set things right in my world, start to rebuild the order, and hunt down those responsible for the fall of the Avatar and the Gunslingers."


	5. Chapter 5

**As always, please review and let me know what you think.**

Sokka retreated from the beach house with his sword held at the ready. It had been a week since they had arrived here and already Lee was testing his battle skills to the limits. Suddenly, Lee bounded off the roof of the beach house and landed in a roll. He came up in a run and charged Sokka. Breaking off a chunk of bamboo, Sokka threw the branch like he would a Frisbee. Lee forced himself into a spinning jump, going up and over the bamboo branch. Landing perfectly, he continued his charge. With a jumping lunge, Lee brought his blade down with a huge amount of strength behind it.

Sokka leapt back, parting Lee's blade with a slight glance from his own. Aang and the others watched as the two parried and trusted their blades, but each one only met air. Then Lee preformed a slight turn, kicking Sokka in the shoulder. Sokka was forced back slightly but he charged Lee with even more force. They swung their blades at each other with full force, and watched in shock as they skidded away in the dirt from them. Sokka moved to go after his own blade, but froze when Lee drew his gun.

"Always have a back up weapon," he said with a slight grin before he gave the gun a slight twirl and returned it to its place on his hip. Both of them went, recovered their blades, and returned to where the others were watching.

"That was amazing," said Suki. Sokka blushed slightly while Lee took a swig of water from a canteen. He then sat his sword to the side and walked back out into the yard.

"Zuko, I need to train with a firebender," he said. Zuko stood up straight from leaning on a post and walked out into yard as well.

"Don't you have firebenders were you come from?" asked Aang as both Lee and Zuko took a stance.

"Yes, but they're few and far between," he replied. Zuko unleashed a bolt of fire, followed by another and another. Lee dodged them quickly as he inched closer and closer to Zuko. The young Fire Nation Prince unleashed a swinging jump kick, resulting in a large wave of fire. Lee rushed forward and stuck his arms out like he was diving. Then he brought his arms away from each other in a breast stoke motion, parting the wave of fire.

"Did he just?" asked Katara in shock. Aang simply nodded, dumbstruck as he watched.

"What? What happened?" asked Toph, unable to see what was going on.

"Its Lee, he just Airbended," said Sokka. Out in the yard, the two benders exchanged various blows. Zuko sent out a large burst of fire while Lee slid under the burst and preformed a roundhouse kick. The wave of air parted the fire right in the middle and forced Zuko back into a palm tree. Now that the duel was over, everyone raced out to question Lee.

"You're an Airbender? Why didn't you tell us?" asked Aang. Lee lowered his head slightly, looking at the ground.

"Its not something you just announce back home," he said.

"Why? Are you ashamed that you have this gift?" asked Katara. But Lee looked up, anger in his eyes.

"It was the law, benders were not allowed to bend unless absolutely necessary. Failure to do so would result in jail time or worse," he said.

"Why would people impose laws against bending?" asked Zuko.

"They had lost faith in the arts, even the Avatar was no longer taking seriously by non benders," he said. Sokka folded his arms.

"Man, your world sure does act weird sometimes," he said.

"My world is just a parallel version of yours, what happened back home can very easily happen here," Lee replied. He left them and walked back to the beach house. In his room, he opened his pack and took out a small photograph. He smiled slightly at the image, looking at the girl depicted by it. Three of his fingers touched the girl in the photo, like he could actually touch her.

"Isabella," he whispered, tears forming in his eyes. A knock came at the door.

"Its open," he said, quickly wiping his eyes. Katara stepped into the room.

"You ok?" she asked. Lee nodded before he handed her the image.

"That's my world's Avatar," he said as she took the photograph.

"She's beautiful," she said, handing the photograph back to him. Lee nodded before he sat on his bed.

"I've been wondering, how is it that you world has an Avatar as well?" she asked. Lee leaned back and fought for a moment.

"There are twelve universes, twelve worlds in total. All of them orbit around each other, around a single black point at the center. Each one has its own Avatar and Avatar cycle," he said.

"And the bending?"

"Its like I said in the yard. This world and my world are parallel versions. Anything that can happen in one is more then possible in the other," he replied.

"So what's at the center?" she asked. Lee chuckled slightly.

"You're just full of questions aren't you? No one knows what lies at the center of everything. Some say a god lives there, others that there's a giant hole. One writer back home said that there was a tower there," he said. Katara laughed slightly.

"That all sounds crazy," she said. But Lee raised a finger.

"And each one of them is entirely possible," he said. Leaning back, Lee looked out the window.

"I'm going to tell you a saying that the Gunslingers use to have. 'Never try to learn everything, because something will always change'," he said.

"What does that mean?"

"It means that out of all the supposedly impossible things, the only one truly impossible is for a human to know everything. Not even the Avatar can learn everything, it's the only truly impossible thing," he said. Katara nodded in understanding before she turned to leave. Then she suddenly changed her mind and looked back at him.

"Just two more questions," she said. Lee gave her a look, waiting for her to speak.

"Is Lee your real name?" Lee leaned back for a second as he considered weather to tell her the truth or not.

"No, its not," he finally answered. Katara didn't react, as she had been expecting this. He watched her for any sort of reaction, but none came.

"How long do you plan on being here, what ever your real name is?" she asked. Lee looked back out the window, out to the sea.

"In order for Aang to be able to fully search his past lives he needs peacetime. So I'm going to be here until the War ends," he answered.


	6. Chapter 6

**As always, please review and let me know what you think. **

"Beach party!" shouted Sokka, encouraging everyone else to head down to the water. Only Zuko and Lee stayed behind.

"Do they really think that now is the proper time to have a party?" Zuko asked. Lee sat with propped his feet up on a chair, he spat a chunk of gristle that he had been chewing on.

"I can't control them, maybe you'll have better luck," said Lee, picking his teeth slightly with a fingernail.

"You'll have to help me," said Zuko. Lee gave him a look.

"Do you seriously believe that I'm going to waste bullets this close to the comet?" he asked, looking up at Zuko.

"You could use your sword," Zuko replied. Lee sighed, straightened his helmet, and stood.

"Alright prince, lets get to work," he said. They headed down to the beach and launched their attack. Zuko focused on Aang while Lee worked to keep the others off Zuko's back. He parted Sokka's sword attack, grabbed him, and threw him into the surf. Suki and Lee dueled for a few moments, but he soon overpowered her as well. However, Lee knew that he couldn't fight Katara and Toph.

With Zuko and Aang fighting in the beach house, Lee began to retreat back to the house as well, only blocking and dodging the attacks from the other two benders. Then he heard the crash of Zuko being forced from the second floor of the house. Lee stopped fighting and dropped his sword. Katara quickly bound his wrists with ice before they rushed to where Zuko had landed.

"How can you two just come out and attack us like that, have you gone insane?" asked Sokka.

"Have I gone insane? What about you! Why are you having a beach party this close to the comet?" asked Zuko.

"I was going to wait to fight the Fire Lord until after the comet. The whole point of fighting Ozai before the comet was to end the War, but the War ended when the Fire Nation took Ba Sing Si, so things can't get much worse," said Aang. Lee shook his head slightly.

"He doesn't get it," he said. Everyone's attention switched between Zuko and Lee in confusion.

"What? Get what?" asked Katara. Zuko looked at Aang.

"Its my Father. He plans to use the air fleet and power of the comet to burn down the Earth Kingdom," said Zuko.

"Snuffing out any sort of remaining resistance on the continent," added Lee. Everyone was dumbfounded for a moment.

"Wow. I knew the Fire Lord was bad but, his plan is just pure evil," said Sokka. Katara flicked her wrists, shattering the ice that bound Lee. Rubbing his wrists to return warmth to them, Lee walked away from the group. He suddenly stumbled and fell flat on his face.

"Are you alright Lee?" asked Toph.

"Yeah," he replied, studying what he had tripped over. He dug it out of the sandy soil and held it at length. It was a large chunk of metal, with a section on the bottom like on his revolver.

"What is it?" asked Suki as the small group made their way over to Lee. He handled the slightly rusted object with both reverence and shock.

"This, is a rifle. And a very advanced one at that," he answered.

"What exactly is a rifle?" asked Aang as they studied the weapon.

"Its like my gun, only larger with a longer range. And this one shoots plasma," he said as he stood. Turning, he started to the beach with the rifle.

"So what's plasma?" asked Katara as they hurried after him.

"Like the elements, there are four states of matter. The main three you know as Solid, Liquid, and Gas. Best way you can see it is with water; you know Ice, Water, and Steam. But the fourth is plasma, like fire," he said as he walked up to the edge of the water.

"Does your world have plasma weapons?" asked Sokka, watching as Lee started to take the rifle apart.

"Very primitive versions, but none this advanced," He said, looking over the guts of the weapon.

"So where did this one come from?" asked Katara. Lee sat back on his heels and ran his fingers though his hair. He let out a sigh before he continued.

"I don't know, no one does. The Gunslingers have been finding stuff like this back home for years." With a quick yank, Lee ripped two glowing spheres of crystal from the rifle before he picked up the disassembled weapon and threw the parts into the sea. He then walked over to a post and set one of the spheres on top. Walking back to the small group, he drew his revolver.

"What are you doing?" asked Aang.

"If a sample of my gun can alter the course of your world's destiny. This gun could very easily bring about even more horrors then just that. It must be destroyed." He raised the gun, took careful aim, and fired. The sphere and the post vanished in a flash of light. When the light dimed, all that remained was a small crater with the edges melted into glass.

"Stupid Artifacts," Lee muttered as he holstered the gun, placed the other crystal into his pocket, and walked back up to the beach house leaving everyone else to stare in awe at the glowing crater. Katara turned and quickly hurried back up to the house after Lee.

"You said that there are twelve universes, but you never said why you came to ours," she said as she caught up to him. But Lee didn't stop; rather he walked through the halls.

"I'm here for the Orb, I told you that already," he said. They rounded another corner and found themselves in the hallway were Zuko and Aang had fought.

"You also told me that there was more then one of those things," she replied. Lee opened the door to his room and spun around.

"The others were destroyed, the one here is our last hope. And for the record my world is the most advanced out off all the twelve, but soon we're going to be so far behind that we'll look like we're in the stone age compared to you," he said before he closed the door, separating himself from her.

"Wow. Is a world without an Avatar really that bad?" Katara asked to no one in particular. The door slid back open a crack and Lee stuck his head out.

"Yes it is. I know of two others that lost their Avatar, and they're unstable and overrun with beasts," he said before the door closed again. Katara sighed before she started back downstairs.

It was going to be a long week for all of them.


	7. Chapter 7

**As always, please review and let me know what you think. **

**A/N: Well the end will be here soon. If you liked this one please don't worry, as a second one will be up. This new one will be set in Korra's time so we can all look forward to it and wonder what things will look like.  
**

Lee looked out over the fields to the shattered remnants of the outer wall of Ba Sing Se. It had only been a hand full of hours since the small group had arrived in the camp of the Order of the White Lotus. This had been a rather interesting for Lee, experience meeting this world's version of his old and fallen order. However, he knew that it was only a short amount of time before the Fire Nation Fleet unleashed a massive firestorm.

"Lee, this is my Uncle Iroh," said Zuko as he introduced his uncle to Lee. Lee bowed slightly out of respect.

"I've heard many stories about you General, its an honor to finally meet you," he said, Iroh returned the bow.

"The felling is mutual," said the aging General. The small group gathered around a campfire and bowls of food were passed out. Lee picked up a roll and dabbed slightly at the soup in his bowl.

"Lee, are you going with us to take out the air fleet or the Fire Nation Capital to help Zuko?" asked Suki. Lee didn't really answer as he studied the blueprints to the airships.

"I'd say we have our answer," said Sokka in amusement. But Aang's disappearance still had them slightly on edge. Although Lee wasn't very worried about Aang, as he knew that he could handle himself.

"Sozin's comet is arriving, and our destinies are upon us," said Iroh as he sat his bowl to the side. Both groups began to pack up, Zuko and Katara loading up Appa while Lee, Suki, Toph, and Sokka loaded up two lizard like mounts. Toph and Lee mounted one while Sokka and Suki mounted the other.

"Goodbye everyone, today destiny is our friend. I know it," said Iroh. With a rumble Appa sprang into the air. With a formal salute, Lee forced his mount forward with Sokka's, and together the two mounts and their riders raced though the ruble filled gap in the wall. The landscape and most of the day passed before they reached the sea on the far edge of the former Earth Kingdom. As the mounts swam though the sea, Lee took the time to double check and prepare his equipment for the upcoming fight.

"Are you ready for what's coming?" asked Toph as they covered the large amount of water.

"I faced Russian hordes, Korean death camps, and the death of the Avatar. I think I'm ready for a few airships and firebenders," he replied. Although he couldn't see her face in the fading light, he felt Toph squirm slightly with unconfort.

"We'll be fine," he said in a reassuring tone. He felt her relax slightly, and then they spotted the island. Behind them, an unearthly orange glow began to fill the sky as the comet began to skim across the atmosphere. Standing on the beach, they dismounted and started up the slope in front of them.

"We're too late!" cried Sokka in defeat as the airships began to rise up in front of them.

"Where's the nearest ship?" asked Toph. Lee tensed his legs, as he knew what was about to happen.

"It's right there," started Sokka, but was interrupted as Toph Earthbended them all into the air. But the angle at which they were launched messed up, sending Toph, Sokka, and Suki to one, while Lee was launched at another. They all landed on a gangplank below their ships, with Toph and Suki managing to catch Sokka before he completely overshot his landing.

"Take that half, I got this one!" called Lee as he straitened his helmet before he started to run. None of the crewmembers had been alerted to his presence yet, and he planed to use this to his outmost advantage. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as the other's ship dived slightly and settled out low over the water for a moment before gaining speed and returning to right altitude, this time further ahead of the rest of the fleet in an attempt to catch up to the Fire Lord's ship.

Spotting the coast, Lee took a deep breath before he began his assault. With an Airbending assisted kick, he knocked a door open and startled many crewmembers inside. Instantly his sword was out of its sheath as he slashed and hacked his way though them. Alarms began to sound though out the ship as he ran, cutting down everyone in his path.

The whoosh of a Firebender releasing a burst of flame sounded behind him. With a quick duck, Lee landed like he was doing a pushup, allowing the fireball to pass harmlessly overhead. Rolling over, he threw his sword like it was a spear and watched as the blade passed though the Royal Armor like it was warm butter. Using a forceful thrust with his feet, he shot into the air and landed on his feet, drawing his revolver in the process.

Recovering his sword, Lee sheathed the blade before he continued through the winding corridors. Stopping at a window, he watched as the other ships began to release a large never-ending wave of fire. Looking down, he spied a guard tied off to a cable. With a swing of his gun, Lee broke the window and pounced upon the guard in less then a second.

The guard was almost totally helpless as Lee fired a round the cut his line and then kicked him away from the ship. Holstering his revolver and securely rapping his arm around the cable, Lee took a deep breath before he jumped. Swinging like an ape on a vine, the Gunslinger was carried around the front of ship, in front of the glass windows of the bridge. He could see their shocked faces as he passed, just before he drew his small crossbow.

"Boom," he whispered simply before he squeezed the trigger. The bolt covered the distance between them in less then a millisecond, followed closely by the resulting explosion. Glass and debris rained down around him as the ship listed, then angled smashed into the ship on the starboard side. The impact jostled Lee around as he was launched high into the air before he released the cable. Using his Airbending again, he was able to navigate himself onto the next ship in line. Landing with a large thump and a slight roll, he was up on a knee in less then a second.

"Two down, four to go," he said to himself before he took notice of the large battle taking place before him. Aang had returned, and he was battling the Fire Lord. Glancing up, he saw another airship coming in low over the fleet. One by one, it smashed though the other ships before reaching the gap he had left behind and smashing into the one he was on.

Running and jumping, Lee landed on top of the new ship and rode it as it smashed though two more ships. Forced forward by the last impact, Lee landed on the last ship in the row. With a groan, he stood to full height and readied his revolver.

"It's been a long time, hasn't it Liam?" asked a voice. Spinning around, he cocked his revolver and pointed it at the newcomer.

"Jeremiah," he said, his voice a cross between a whisper of shock and a hiss of venom. Jeremiah shrugged slightly.

"Do you know any other?" he asked. Lee, or Liam, was seeing blood red.

"You betrayed us, that day at the library, you betrayed us and left us to die," he said, ignoring the groan of metal as the other airships began to fall out of the sky.

"Please, the Gunslingers have seen their time, my friend. Nature stomps out the old and the week, the order was both," said Jeremiah.

"And what about Isabella? You betrayed her as well," he said. Jeremiah shrugged slightly.

"One world's Avatar. With the technology we have I can rule this one without any sort of interference," said Jeremiah. Lee sighed slightly before he holstered his revolver.

"Introducing technology, eradication of an order, and murder of the woman I loved. Rot in hell you son of a bitch," said Lee calmly before he struck with his Airbending.


	8. Chapter 8

**As always, please review and let me know what you think.**

The quick jabs of fire met only air Lee danced from side to side, dodging and counterattacking with his Airbending. He could see the grit of frustration as Jeremiah fought him, but even with his enhanced Firebending, he still could not score a hit on Lee. Then, Lee's hair began to stand on end, and he realized what was about to happen. Acting quickly, he threw his helmet from his head like it was a Frisbee. The green metal disk gleamed in the burnt orange light as is soared though the air and struck Jeremiah in the face.

"Christ!" came the muffled cry as the traitor clutched his face for a moment. Then he released his face, reveling a bloodied nose and mouth. With a quick move, his body went on point as lightning flew from the tip of his fingers. Moving at almost superhuman speed, Lee drew his sword and stuck it into the hull of the ship before he dove to the side, using his Airbending to keep him level. But rather then strike the Airbender; the bolt of lightning stuck the sword.

Jeremiah emitted a cry of pain as the electric current traveled down through the sword, into the hull, and back to him. Lee kept himself elevated until Jeremiah finally released the current and collapsed onto the hull.

"Enough Jeremiah, just face the consequences of your actions for once," said Lee as he advanced slowly. Then two shots rang out. Lee stumbled slightly, clutching the left side of his abdomen. Jeremiah was grinning like a madman where he lay, a smoking Luger in his hand. Lee looked down and removed his hand; his shirt and hand were painted red with his blood. At almost lightning speed, he drew his Colt and fired.

But Jeremiah sprang into the air, allowing the bullet to pass under him. Both of them had their training working at the limits as they ran and dodged, firing all the while. However, Lee's wound slowed him, making this fight much more difficult. Finally, he collapsed and threatened to black out. Then Jeremiah appeared over him.

"Weak, just like I said before. The Gunslingers' time is up, Liam, and so is yours," he said before he dug though Lee's pockets. Then he came up with the crystal from the artifact rifle.

My, you have been busy! Where'd you get a power cell like this? Another one of those artifacts?" he asked as he walked away from him. Lee haled himself to his feet, clutching his wound with a grimace. He stumbled his blade, retrieved it, and resheathed it before facing Jeremiah again. His adversary turned again, still studying the crystal. But Jeremiah's head shot up when the sound of a gun being cocked sounded.

"What are you?" he started, but Lee fired his gun. The crystal exploded into a blinding flash. A shockwave rippled the hull and forced Lee back and over the side of the ship. Time seemed to slow as he fell. He watched the ship being torn apart by the crystal's explosion. But then, another light lit up the area. A blue and orange glow that cut through even the light of the comet.

Then Lee blacked out as he fell, hoping that he would be able to recover from the fall in time.

"Lee, are you ok? Lee?" came Katara's call. Slowly, he came back to his senses. Then the pain suddenly shot through the dullness like an arrow, causing Lee to cry out and nearly pass out again.

"Easy!" said Sokka. Slowly, almost everyone in the group swam into his vision. Light was fading as the comet began to disappear. Appa grumbled slightly, but Aang, Katara, Suki, and Toph blotted out the large bison as they stood around him. Slowly, Katara bended some water out of her pack and placed it over his wound. As her hands began to glow, Lee began to squirm as he felt the tissues repair themselves.

"Hold still, this is harder then it looks," said Katara as she continued her work. But Lee did as he was told. Finally, after about five minutes, Katara moved to the side, unable to do anymore. Slowly, Lee ran his hand down the side. When he reached where the wound had been, he felt a small bump and a spasm of pain.

"You didn't get the bullet out," he said, painting and wiping away the sweat. Katara shrugged.

"It's going to take someone with a little bit more skill then me to get it out," she said. Lee grinned tiredly before he looked down at his hands. There, clutched in both fists, were two guns. The one in his right was his own, but the one in his left was Jeremiah's. Somehow during the fall, he had managed to catch the masterless weapon.

"Help me up," he grunted. Both Sokka and Toph quickly grabbed his arms and haled him to his feet. Lee grunted as he was pulled up, as his ribs were still bruised and the bullet caused him some trouble.

"You alright?" asked Aang. Lee simply nodded as he regained his breath.

"I take it we won," he said as he looked over the group. Sokka grinned slightly.

"You bet we did! You should have seen Aang, he was all like." But Lee stopped listening as he hobbled to the sky bison. He was bruised, battered, bloodied, and he could use a large dose of sleep. In the saddle, he saw Zuko, dealing with his own wounds. As the bison began to take off and fly over the remnants of the scorched forest, Lee suddenly went tense.

"What's that?" he asked, pointing to a small mound in the scorched zone that would normally be covered by the trees. Sokka brought up his spyglass and studied the mound.

"Looks like a monument," he said in the fading light. Lee forced himself to sit up higher.

"Get down there! I think we found the orb's resting place!" he cried.


	9. Chapter 9

**As always, please review and let me know what you think. **

"So you made us land just to check out a small monument?" asked Sokka tiredly. Lee shot him a look as he studied the rock formation.

"Its got fans in it so its probably activated by Airbending," said Aang as he spun a small fan on his side of the formation. Lee looked over the one on his side as well. Then the two of them thrust out their palms, Airbending into the fans. Almost instantly, the rock formation crumbled into the ground, taking Aang and Lee with it. Down they fell, plummeting into the earth. Then, suddenly, Lee crashed into a few metal rings while Aang landed several feet below. Lee cried out as some of the metal made contact with his side.

"You all right Lee?" came the call from somewhere below in the darkness.

"Yeah," came the repy as he felt over the rings around him. They seemed to be suspended into the air by a few chains. Reaching into his pack, Lee brought out flare and lit it. The flickering red light suddenly sprang up in the inky darkness around him.

"What's that your on?" asked Aang from below. Lee looked down; he could barely make out Aang in the inky shadows.

"Looks like a chandler," came the reply. Reaching around, he used the flare to light the candles on the metal object before he tossed the flare to the side and leapt down next to Aang.

"Where are we?" asked Aang as he looked around the now lit up room. Gold and various seals lined the ceiling and a nearby stage.

"It's a theatre," said Lee with amazement. They slowly approached the stage, where on a pedestal sat a single orb. Aang reached out to touch it, but stopped when Lee placed his hand on his shoulder.

"Did your trip to the Sun Warrior's compound teach you nothing?" he asked. Aang sighed as he lowered his arms. Lee around the small pedestal, studying it in great length before he stood up straight again.

"Run program!" he called in a commanding tone. Instantly, a see through image of a woman appeared on the edge of the stage. Lee walked up to her, anger and confusion in his eyes.

"Why are you here? Your kind was only suppose to be in the Fifth Universe!" he shouted. The woman looked down upon him like she was looking at a child.

"We once ruled all universes, young human, but the twelve Avatars viewed us as hostile and warlike, so they destroyed us," she said. Lee clenched his jaw as he looked up at her.

"Are there any traps set around the orb?" he asked. The woman shook her head, but did not speak. Lee sighed before he ran his fingers though his hair.

"Program terminated," he said before the woman disappeared. Walking back over to the orb, Lee picked it up gently using both hands. Instantly, the orb seamed to glow a little brighter, its golden light shooting out like spotlights to light up the dark corners of the room.

"Aang, get us out of here," he said. Aang opened his glider and jumped off stage with Lee right behind him. With Lee clinging to his leg, they shot back up the shaft and out into the night air.

"That was amazing!" cried Aang as they landed. But Lee kept his cool as he looked over the orb. Finally, he had. Finally, he had a way to save his love. A single metallic click sounded in the cool night air as Lee brought out his device.

"What are you doing?" asked Katara. Lee shoulders sunk as he sighed.

"I really hate goodbyes," he said. Everyone, even Appa rushed to give him and hug and flattened him on the ground.

"You can't leave yet," said Toph.

"I'm not going away permanently, I'm just going back to bring someone back to life and set things straight is all." Everyone stepped back slightly.

"When will you be back?" asked Aang. Lee shrugged.

"Time moves differently from world to world, but I shall return as soon as I can, I promise," he said. A soft glowing green line sprang up above the object.

"We're holding you to that promise," said Katara as he turned away. Lee knelt down and clutched the object before a blinding green flash sprang up. When it cleared: Lee and the object had vanished.

**Like how Aang's story ended with The Last Airbender, so does Lee's. But this is not the end to the overall story, in fact it is far from it. As the regular story moves on into Korra's time, so does this story as well. Look for 'The Gunfighter' under the Legend of Korra tab and follow Lee's son into the dark underground of Republic City and the brewing anti bender revolution. Thank you all for reading and i hope to see you at the next one. **


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